Mourdock backs Notre Dame in lawsuit

Senate candidate in town to talk about federal contraception mandate.

Richard Mourdock talks with a couple of supporters on Thursay morning at the St. Joseph County Republican HQ in South Bend. (South Bend Tribune/SANTIAGO FLORES)

SOUTH BEND – Republican U.S. Senate candidate Richard Mourdock defended an effort by the University of Notre Dame to overturn a federal mandate involving health care coverage for contraception during a campaign stop here Thursday.

The state treasurer also took a jab at his opponent, Democrat Joe Donnelly.

"It's ironic that a graduate of Ball State should be here defending Notre Dame when a Notre Dame graduate, my opponent Joe Donnelly, refuses to do so," Mourdock said during a press conference at Republican Party Headquarters.

Mourdock also questioned Donnelly's non-support of the "Blunt amendment," which would have allowed employers with moral objections to the contraception mandate to opt out of it.

"He refuses to separate himself from the policies of Obamacare, from the policies of stimulus, from the policies of bailout," Mourdock said of Donnelly, who represents the state's 2nd Congressional District.

Mourdock said he is not opposed to contraception as a rule, but that it should be an individual choice.

"I'm not a Catholic, so I'm not going to mandate to the Catholic Church what it should do," he said, "and I don't think the federal government should, either."

Mourdock visited the area to affirm his support for Notre Dame and other Catholic organizations that this week sued the federal government in an effort to overturn the controversial mandate.

He was joined by Brian Burch, president of CatholicVote.org, a non-for-profit political advocacy group committed to protecting the Catholic faith.

Part of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, the contraception mandate requires that religious organizations provide health insurance coverage for contraception and other services that run counter to Catholic teachings.

"I don't think many people recognize the significance this issue has for Catholic voters and voters across America," Burch said. "This handcuffing of the Catholic Church will not only have a damaging effect on Catholics ... but all religious believers."

Mourdock cited the mandate as another example of government overreach and described it as an attack on religious liberty.

"It's not just about health care," he said, "it's about the federal government having more and more power over everyday life."

Regarding health care reform in general, the federal government needs to go back to the drawing board, Mourdock said.

"I don't believe that there is any aspect of Obamacare that can't be replace by other, better means," he said.

Donnelly, who is pro-life, supported the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, but only after the president signed an executive order guaranteeing that no federal money would be used to pay for abortions.

In a statement Thursday, Donnelly said he believes it's important that health insurance companies cover contraception, but also that religious institutions, including Notre Dame, "are not required to act against their religious beliefs."

"Both the administration and religious-affiliated institutions are seeking an appropriate solution," he said, "and I will continue to monitor the process as it moves forward."